Housing Law

Provides free legal information regarding Landlord/Tenant relations. This information includes, but is not limited to, habitability issues, security deposits, evictions, lease agreements, roommate disputes, and mobile home law. The following are common responses to frequently asked questions. These responses are not legal advice, simply legal information.

1. I received an eviction notice. How long do I have to move out? 
   
   

   According to NOLO’s California Tenants’ Rights (23nd edition), when a month-to-month tenant has been renting the unit for less than one (1) year, they have thirty (30) days to vacate. Tenants who have resided continuously in the rental for a year or more are entitled to 60 days’ notice. The notice need not state why the landlord wants you out. It simply says that you must leave in 30 or 60 days (or more).

   If your landlord receives rent or other payments from the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) or a local or state program (most of which operate as “housing authorities”) on your behalf, you are entitled to 90 days’ notice, not 30 or 60. In addition, the landlord must state the reason for termination on the 90-day notice. And if you are a Section 8 tenant, your landlord cannot give you a 90-day notice until your initial rental term has elapsed. The Eviction Process from the California Courts website

2. How much time do I have to file a response after being served with the Summons and Complaint of my unlawful detainer? 
   
   

   According to the California Courts website, after being served with the Summons and (unlawful detainer) Complaint, there is a deadline of five (5) days to respond if you were served in person. If you were served by substituted service or “post and mail,” you have fifteen (15) days after the date the server mailed the court papers to file a response. If you decide to file a response, your options include filing a motion to quash, demurrer, or answer to the unlawful detainer complaint.

   Information on filing unlawful detainers

   Overview of the eviction process
3. When do I get my security deposit back? 
   
   
   According to NOLO’s California Tenants’ Rights (23nd edition), within 21 days after you move out the landlord must return all of your deposit or give you an “itemized statement” in writing, saying why the landlord is retaining part or all of the deposit, including receipts for work done and items purchased (if the amount is $125 or more), and return any remaining part to you. Landlords who cannot complete the work within the three-week period, or who do not have the necessary receipts, may deduct a good-faith estimate of the charges, but must supply the receipts within 14 days of receiving them. If your efforts to fix or clean don’t measure up, the landlord can still charge you.

   Information regarding security deposits from the California Self Help website

4. My roommate moved out before our lease was up and is refusing to pay their half of the rent. What can I do? 
   
   

   According to NOLO’s California Tenants’ Rights (23nd edition), co-tenants are “jointly and severally liable” for paying rent. With this, if you and your roommate signed a lease or rental agreement with your landlord, you are considered co-tenants and are expected to pay rent. In order to avoid being evicted for unpaid rent, one of your options is to send your roommate a written request for the unpaid rent.

   Additionally, according to NOLO’s California Tenants’ Rights (23nd edition), if you are unable to reach an agreement with your roommate, you have the option of suing them in small claims court. More information on roommates and rent

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5. I contacted my landlord one (1) month ago to fix my leaky roof, but I have not received any response. Is this a habitability issue? 
   
   

   Under California Civil Code §1941.1, California tenants are legally entitled to a habitable and livable place. When a landlord fails to maintain a habitable rental unit, the tenant may have legal rights to withhold rent, repair and deduct, sue the landlord, or move out without notice.

   According to NOLO’s California Tenants’ Rights (23nd edition), rent withholding allows for you to stop paying rent to the landlord until the repairs are made. To withhold rent, you must meet the following prerequisites:

   • It’s a major repair or habitability problem
   • The problem must Not be something that you or a guest caused either deliberately or through carelessness or neglect
   • You told the landlord about the problem and gave him or her a reasonable opportunity to fix it
   • You’ve withheld a reasonable amount of rent, relative to the problem
   • You’ve complied with any local laws or rent withholding

   With repair and deduct, you can hire a repair person to fix or, or repair it yourself, and subtract the cost from the following month’s rent. Information regarding rent withholding and “repair and deduct”

6. My tenant moved out one (1) month ago and left a lot of their belongings behind. Can I throw them away? 
   
   

   If you leave belongings on the premises when you move out, you must ask the landlord for them, in writing, within 18 days. Your request must describe the property and must give the landlord your mailing address. Within five days of receiving your request, the landlord may demand, in writing, that you pay reasonable costs for storage. You must pay the charges and pick up the property within 72 hours of receiving the landlord’s demand. If the landlord doesn’t comply with your request, you can sue for your actual damages and, if the landlord acted in bad faith, for another $250 in damages. (CC § 1965.) The landlord may notify you, in writing, that the property is still there. The notice should describe the property and tell you where the property can be claimed, how long you have to claim it, and that you may have to pay reasonable costs for storage. The landlord must give you at least 15 days (18 days, if the notice is mailed) to claim the property.

   If the property is worth less than $700, the landlord is free to dispose of it. If it is worth more than that, the landlord must sell it at a public sale, subtract costs of sale and storage, and turn the rest over to the county. You have a year to claim the net profit from the sale. (Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1983, 1988.)
   According to California Civil Code § 1983, if the tenancy has been terminated and the tenant has moved out of the rental unit, any property left behind is considered abandoned. With this, you have the option of notifying the tenant of their abandoned property and your intention to dispose of it. The tenant’s abandoned property may be stored in a safe location for at least fifteen (15) days (after the notice is personally delivered) or eighteen (18) days (if mailed).

7. My landlord raised my rent by more than ten percent (10%) in under a one (1) year period. Is this legal? 
   
   

   According to the California Rental Housing Association’s website, “Landlords may raise the rent up to 5% plus the applicable Consumer Price Index (CPI) or 10%, whichever is lower. Percentage change in the CPI would mean the percentage change from April 1 of the prior year, to March 31 of the current year for the region in which the rental property is located. Your calculation must be from the lowest gross rental rate charged for the unit at any time during the 12 months prior to the effective date of increase. For renters who have lived in the unit for more than 12 months, you may raise the rent up to two times within that period, as long as the total increases do not exceed the state’s rent cap. If you raised the rent more than 5% plus CPI prior to March 15, 2019, the rent remains in effect without any change needed. If you raised the rent more than 5% plus CPI after March 15, 2019, you will need to adjust the rent down to the March 15, 2019 rent, plus 5% plus CPI or 10% (whichever is lower AS OF January 1, 2020.) No refund will be due to the tenant for rent collected from March 15, 2019 to January 1, 2020. This is because the bill was written with a retroactive rent date included. The new law does not affect your right to raise the rent to market once a tenant vacates the unit. However, once a new renter is placed in the unit, any future rent increases on that tenant will be subject to the rent cap. You may choose the initial rent for the new tenant. But once the new renter is in the unit, any future rent increases will be subject to the rent cap”.

   Information regarding rent increase limits (AB 1482)

8. My residence does not allow pets, but I have a service animal. Can I move it in anyway? 
   
   

   • Under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), assistance animals must be allowed in housing as a reasonable accommodation for a tenant’s disability.

     According to FEHA, a landlord may deny a request to keep a service dog, psychiatric service dog, or support animal in California as a reasonable accommodation if the specific animal:

     • Poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others, OR
     • Would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others.

     For more information go to the civil rights department (PDF)

9. How do mobile home laws differ from housing laws? 
   
   

   For mobile homes Only:

   • The management shall give a homeowner written notice of any increase in his or her rent at least 90 days before the date of the increase.
   • No lease agreement entered into… after January 1, 2001, shall prohibit a homeowner from keeping at least one pet within the park, subject to reasonable rules and regulations of the park. This section may not be construed to affect any other rights provided by law to a homeowner to keep a pet within the park, (“pet” means any domesticated bird, cat, dog, aquatic animal kept within an aquarium, or other animal as agreed to between the management and the homeowner.)
   • A homeowner shall not be charged a fee for the enforcement of any of the rules and regulations of the park, except a reasonable fee may be charged by management for the maintenance or cleanup, as described in subdivision (b), of the land and premises upon which the mobilehome is situated in the event the homeowner fails to do so in accordance with the rules and regulations of the park after written notification to the homeowner and the failure of the homeowner to comply within 14 days.
   • A homeowner shall give written notice to the management of not less than 60 days before vacating his or her tenancy.

   Learn more about the California MobileHome Residency Law (PDF)